Shipping-case.



A. BENSON.

SHIPPING CASE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN-20, 191a.

1,Q30,985. Patented June 26, 1917.

. 2 SHEETS-SHEET I. r91

fave/12r- Qsxre I fifth l 1 v v n SHIPPING CASE.-

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 20. 1916.

1 ,230,985 Patented June 26, 1917 1 2 5 g l4 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' and express.

ANDREW BENSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SHIPPING-CASE.

Specification of Letters Patent;

Patented June 26, 1917.

Application filed January 20, 1916. Serial No. 73,088.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW BENSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chi cago, in the county of Cook and nois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Shipping- Gases, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification. 1

This invention relates to improvements in shipping cases and more particularly to shipping cases for bottles and like articles.

Heretofore, great difiiculty and expense have been encountered in the shipping of bottled goods in quantities in cases which has restricted the sale of such goods by mail In the case of bottled been-it has been customary to use wooden cases holding two or three dozen bottles, but these cases are relatively expensive due to the material employed and also to the high freight rates required in transporting the same because of their bulk and weight. The expense of these wooden cases is so high that the sellers of bottled goods have, as a general found it prohibitive to use said.

practice, cases with a quantity of bottles less than two dozen since the cases. are often retained or destroyed by the consumer of the bottled goods and constitute a loss to the shipper. Attempts have also been made to employ metal bottle cases, but these have also proven unsatisfactory on account of their initial expense and liability to damage. Furthermore, the types of wooden and metallic bottleshipping cases above referred to are unsatisfactory for general shipping purposes because of the fact thatthey must always be stacked in a certain wayand provide practically no means for preventing breakage of the bottles in the event the cases are dropped or otherwise roughly handled. It is also evident that the types of shipping cases above referred to are. unsuitable for shipping of bottled goods by parcel post.

The object of my invention is to provide a relatively inexpensive shipping case, for bottles and bottled goods which-is free from State of 1111- v all the objections above noted and which will be adaptable for shipping bottled goods by parcel post, and which may be destroyed by the consumer without entailing. excessive loss to the shipper.

Another ob]ect of the invention is to pro-' vide a shipping case of the character described wherein is utilized commercial Iorms of corrugated strawboard cartons -nov$" on the market and which may therefore be shipped knocked down to the origi nal user, thereby decreasing freight bills.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a shipping case for bottles and the like so arranged that each of the bottles is individually and yieldingly held against movement in any direction Within the container and wherein each bottle is properly spaced from the other bottles and from all the walls of the container proper.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a longitudinal, vertical sectional view of a shipping case showing. my improvements in connection therewith. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1 taken partly on the line 2-2 thereof and partly on the line 2 -2 thereof. Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 of Fig. 1. And Figs. 4: and 5' are detail sectional views taken respectively on the lines H and 5-5 of Fig. 3 illustrating the spring fingers employed in spacing and holding the bottles in position.

-In said drawing, A designates generally the outer-case. or contain-er proper, which is of a well known form andmade of corrugated strawb'oard. The same is provided manner.

Within the carton or container A is provided a lower partition B and an upper horizontal partition C. The lower partition or 40 engage against the necks 24 of the bottles member B ispreferably composed of relatively heavy cardboardv and has attached thereto a pluralityof metallic bottle holders '15. Each of said bottle holders 15, as shown, is provided with four equally spaced ,upstanding, reversely curved spring fingers 16, the upper ortions of said fingers being outwardly ared and thereby adapted to facilitate the insertion of the bottom of' a bottle therein. In order to provide proper strength for the spring fingers 16 the members are ribbed around their edges as indicated at 17. The metallic holders 15 are attached in proper position to the partition 15 by integral tongues 18 which are passed through the partition 15 and clenched thereagainst on the underside as clearly indicated in Fig. 1. From the foregoing it will be seen that the bottoms of the bottles are held in proper spaced relation and are prevented from lateral displacement'and at the same time areyieldingly retained by the spring fingers 16. j

The, upper horizontal partition C, as

shown, comprises a rectangular metal sheet having a. plurality of perforations therein in alinement with the bottle holding members 15 on the-lower partition B. "The perforations referred to are preferably formed by striking up a plurality of-prong-shapedspring fingers 19 each of whichhas its upper point flared outwardly as indicated at 20. Each of the spring fingers19 is suitably strengthened by a centrally located rib or corrugation 21, and the entire metal partition is suitably strengthened against crushing or flexing by longitudinal ribs or corrugations'22an'd transverse ribs orcorrugations 23. As clearly shown in Fig, 1, the upper portionsof the spring fingers 19 will and the lower portions of said spring fingers will rest upon the breasts 25 of the bottles.

The lower partition B is spaced, from the bottom wall of the container A by means of a relatively stiffyet slightly compressible corrugatedxpaper member 26, and the upper partition C is held in fixed relation with the top wall of the container A by a corrugated paper spacer 27 folded to rectangular form .and which fits against the inside walls of the container, as clearly illustrated in Figs.

1 and' 2. In order that the spacer 27 shall always properly engage the partition C, and

also to increasethe strength ofthe latter,

said partition 0 is provided with upstanding'flanges 28 around its four edges and within which is received the bottom edge of said spacer 27 For convenience, the lower partition B is provided with finger holes 29. In assembling, the carton A is first made up with the bottom sealed and'the top left open.- The corru ated member 26 is then i inserted after whlch the bottom partition B is inserted. The bottles are next applied,

each being inserted between a set of the spring fingers 16. After the bottles are in proper position, the upper partition C is inserted and presseddown against the breasts of the bottles. Next the spacer 27 is inserted and finally the top is closed by folding the flaps 12 and 13 and sealing the latter in the usual manner.

From the drawings and preceding description 'itwill be seen that the bottles are spaced from the side, end, to and bottom walls of the outer casing so t at an ordinary dent or blow will not reach the ottles. In addition the upper partition C is alwa s held in fixed relation with respect 'to t e top wall of the container by the corrugated member 27 which is strong underco'mpression. The lower partition B is mounted on a compressible cushioning member which will accommodate any ordina blows against the bottom :of the container and will cushion the bottles sufficiently to prevent breakage should the container be dropped on its bottom.; By means of the lower sets of spring fingers 16 and upper sets, of spring fingers 19, the bottles are slightly yieldingly supported against any lateral movement even though the case is turned onits side and because of the strong support 27 provided for the upper" partition 0, the latter will eflectively support the bottles even though the case isvturnedv upside down. The entire arrangement is light, strong, relatively cheap to manufacture, may be, shipped knocked down, and the same adapts itself readily to the shipping of a smaller number of bottles, such as a dozen for instance, than has heretofore been found commercially practicable. Furthermore, bythe arrangement of upper and of the clalm appended hereto,

claim:

- A shipping case adapted for bottles and the like comprising, a collapsible straw 'boardcontainer adapted to be shipped and modifications that come within the scope knocked down, a bottompartitioninsertible within the container and havin yieldable "means thereon for holding a p urality of bottles in spaced relation, cushioning means beneath said partltion, a second partition located above the bottom partition and perforated to fit over the necks of the bottles 7 I I and against the breasts thereof and provided also with yieldable means engaging the bottles, and

a spacer formed from corrubottles are held spaced from the upper wall of the container and are yieldably supported at their bottoms and against lateral movement.

In witness that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto subscribed my name this 15th day of Jan. 1916.

ANDREW BENSQN. 

